tonymmorley OP t1_iwi4iqh wrote on November 15, 2022 at 8:23 PM

"The “most complicated therapy ever” tailors bespoke, genome-edited immune cells to attack tumors" — In First, Scientists Use CRISPR for Personalized Cancer Treatment 🧬

Paywall? Jump it here: https://archive.ph/VRhPp

"A small clinical trial has shown that researchers can use CRISPR gene editing to alter immune cells so that they will recognize mutated proteins specific to a person’s tumours. Those cells can then be safely set loose in the body to find and destroy their target."

Hey team, if you're interested in progress studies, check out "The Progress Dashboard", an experimental proof of concept wiki of progress resources. The project concept is very much at the beta stage, so any positive or constructive feedback is most welcome.

Root Study: Foy, S. P. et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05531-1 (2022).

Necessary-Celery t1_iwk3v6e wrote on November 16, 2022 at 5:28 AM

> The “most complicated therapy ever” tailors bespoke, genome-edited immune cells to attack tumors

Tell me expensive, without saying expensive.

fortus_gaming t1_ix4i9of wrote on November 20, 2022 at 6:17 PM

It is is not just about being expensive, but potentially fatal if things go wrong; you are editing immune cells that perform very dangerous tasks that require being able to tell apart "normal" body cells from "diseased" cancer cells (in this case cancer cells with mutated genes).

If the now-reprogrammed immune cells start attacking healthy cells, or if the process of gene editing itself goes wrong and during insertion of the genes into the host there are "unintended rearrangements" (basically oopsies) it could lead to a plethora of things, including but not limited to; chromosome rearrangements and/or chromosomal instability if too much of the DNA is damaged directly or indirectly during "repairs", leukemias, etc.

Some of these patients were receiving immuno-depressing therapies for more than a year! You have to balance other medications that goes with it, and let me tell you something about research with the sickly; it is expensive mentally, physically and economically to not only patients, families, practitioners and and all other supporting staff, but you also have to take into account that rarely do these patients present with only that cancer, chances are they are dealing with other concurrent diseases like diabetes or other metabolic syndromes, as well as socioeconomic barriers preventing them from getting proper care.

Many things can go wrong, you can throw millions, if not billions of $$$ at it and it is still does not solve the fundamental problem because capital is not the choke point.